The Two-Way

7:52 pm

Fri May 3, 2013

Marist Poll Explores How Old Is Old

Lee Miringoff, head of Marist College's Institute for Public Opinion, during his younger days in Sept. 26, 2005.

Jim McKnight AP

Every year around the time of pollster Lee Miringoff's birthday, The Marist Institute tries to pin down what "old" means by conducting a poll.

This year, Miringoff turned 62 years old.

NPR's Ina Jaffe filed this report for our Newscast unit:

"Anything over 60 was once considered old. But as people live longer and work later into life, the term middle aged has become more elastic. Miringoff, who's the head of the Marist Poll, found that nearly 60 percent of Americans think he's middle aged. 28 percent think he's old, but that's a 6 percent increase over last year.

"The poll also shows that age is in the eye of the beholder. Less than a fifth of Americans older than 45 think someone is old if they're 62. But a solid majority of adults younger than 30 think the 62 year old Miringoff is old."